Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

In response to one of the Senator's last comments, I wish to say that this is an emergency Bill and we are addressing the courts. That is specifically what we are doing in the provision. Everybody has expressed a view on the really short time that it has taken us to bring this legislation to the committee and bring it to Cabinet. Everything has been done at a much faster pace than I would have liked and I believe that such speed does not give us the time to tease through wider issues. That is why I have given a very clear commitment that we will have a general scheme by the end of the year. We will go through quite a lengthy process with Senators and we will engage with everybody from our different agencies, the communications platforms, the Data Protection Commission and others. We really are focused on what the ruling is here.

In response to the comment made by Senator Ruane, there are greater safeguards in this Bill than currently exist. At the moment this information can be accessed for a criminal offence. As far as I am aware, the technology is not being misused or mistreated. There has not been general access for any individual or targeting of groups of people, particular areas or anything like that. We had an extra layer in the form of reasonable grounds. If one has to show reasonable grounds then that must be reported on yearly so it is not that these cases are never seen by anybody. This has to be reported on and will be reviewed. If somebody has not given reasonable grounds, or has abused their position or their access to this information then that will be shown very clearly in the reports. There are safeguards at another level and this matter must be reported on.

I will now give my personal view and say that I think law enforcement agencies should be able to access information where there is a criminal offence, a serious offence. Where there is a threat or risk to my life, the lives of Senators or anybody's life then access should be allowed. I regret that I must bring forward some of these elements of the Bill because I think that gardaí should be able to access information if somebody's life is at risk. I do not think somebody's personal privacy should overrule a person's right to feel safe and protected, particularly where a serious crime has been committed. I appreciate that we are not talking about serious crimes but criminal offences in general, which is slightly different. The very fact that the courts have ruled that general data is not seen in the same way as Schedule 2 data is why we are applying this provision.

On the use of different terminology, there is prevention, detection, prosecution but also investigation. So if a person suspects someone to be guilty of a crime or is investigating that crime then, to me, that scenario fits in the provision. Again, that is part of the ruling and what the court stated when it ruled on this matter.